


Lost Boy

by justanoutlaw



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Cursed Hyperion Heights, F/M, Implied Sexual Content, Prostitute Henry Mills, Prostitution, Season/Series 07, Single Parents, Teacher/Single Parent AU, Tumblr Prompt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-21
Updated: 2018-10-23
Packaged: 2019-06-30 12:20:09
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,492
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15751548
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/justanoutlaw/pseuds/justanoutlaw
Summary: After losing his wife, his career and his home, Henry resorts to drastic measures to support his daughter.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Anonymous on Tumblr prompted: I’m thinking GlassBeliever 31 (prostitute client AU) would be interesting.
> 
> No actual smut, but definitely steamy. An AU of S7 where Lucy was put with Henry under the curse and Drizella made sure it couldn’t be broken with TLK between Glass Believer.

Henry Mills couldn’t believe what his life had turned to.

 

Before his wife died, he had been a best selling author and had a beautiful home. Then the fire stole them from him and his second book failed, leaving him with very little money and struggling to make ends meet. One wrong ride with Swyft where he had a panic attack caused him to lose that job as well and he wasn’t sure what he was going to do. He had a young daughter to support and one more missed payment would mean he’d be on the streets.

 

That’s when he met Ivy Belfrey, a madam approached him and told him just how he could start supporting his daughter properly again. He only did it part-time, on the weekends, with his days being devoted to working at a bookstore but he had fallen into a dangerous game. One false move and he could lose Lucy forever, but in this situation…he felt that he had no other way out. It was just temporary, just until he could write a new book and get them out of Hyperion Heights, to somewhere better.

 

Henry made his way down the fourth floor of the hotel he had been directed to go to and found the desired room. Knocking on the door, he held his breath, unsure of who would be on the other side.

 

When it opened, he found a tall woman with dark ringlets that fell down her back. She was wearing a light blue robe and had a glass of champagne in her hands. “Are you The Knight?”

“Um yes, you must be Jacinda.”

“Come in.”

 

Jacinda stepped aside and he looked around the room, it was nice. A queen size bed was pushed up against the wall and a mirror hung on the ceiling, which would leave nothing to the imagination. Henry started fiddling with his coat, but noticed that she looked a bit off.

 

“Are you okay?” He asked.

“The truth is…this is my first time doing anything like this.”

Henry raised an eyebrow. “Seriously?”

Jacinda folded her arms over her chest. “You sound surprised.”

“It’s just…most clients are regulars.”

“I had a really bad break up and my friend, Sabine, told me about this agency.” She shrugged. “Are you here to judge or to have sex?”

“Look, I’m just here to make money.”

“I’d imagine you wouldn’t sell your body if you were flushed with cash.”

Heat tinted Henry’s cheeks. “Now who’s judging?”

“Not judging, just an observation.”

“I have a family to support.”

“Your wife know what you’re up to?”

“She died. It’s just…it’s just me and my little girl.”

 

Jacinda frowned before taking a step forward and kissing him. Henry was taken off guard, but deepened it, surprised that they were getting into it right away. She worked off his wife beater, before fumbling with his belt. This was a first for him, the woman wanting to be in charge.

 

“Let me take care of you,” she whispered in his ear.

Henry stumbled back a little. “Isn’t that my job here?”

“You do enough for everyone else, allow me to help you.”

 

Pushing him back on the bed, Jacinda removed her robe revealing her sexy and curvy body beneath it. Henry panted where he was as she crawled on top of him.

 

“Get ready to have your world rocked, Knight,” she mumbled, before tearing off his boxers.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> trueloveismagicprompted: Glass Believer 4. Teacher/Single parent AU please :)
> 
> Takes place a week after Jacinda and Henry sleep together.

Henry was exhausted. He had jobs all weekend and just wanted to sleep for the next 10 years. However, that morning, Roni couldn’t take Lucy to school like she usually did. So, for the first time that year, he was bringing Lucy to school.

 

His daughter was 10 years old and growing smarter by the day. He worried that she’d one day catch on to what he was doing, but tried to remind himself that he’d find a more suitable job in the meantime. Roni was overstaffed as it was or else she swore she’d give him a job. (Not that she knew what was going on either, she still thought he was driving for Swift.) He put in applications every single day, but nothing worked.

 

Lucy skipped in front of him, happy to get to class. She always talked about how much she loved her teacher, she let the kids pick which books they read and gave a lot of extra help. It was only October, so there was no need for parent-teacher conferences and he had no need to meet her yet. Normally he’d just drop Lucy off at the door, but she insisted he come up and meet Ms. V himself.

 

As they turned the hallway, Henry stopped dead in his tracks. Seattle itself was big enough that he rarely ran into clients. If he had any from Hyperion Heights, they were even less likely to run into one another considering most people couldn’t afford his services. Yet, there she was. The woman from the other night. She was wearing a white dress, with some silver flats, her hair pulled back in a bun. He tried to not stare at her chest and think about what they had done the week before.

 

Before he could run, Jacinda’s eyes met his and they widened. Lucy, oblivious, ran over to her.

 

“Ms. V, Ms. V!” She grabbed her by the hand and dragged her over to Henry. “This is my dad, Henry Mills.”

Jacinda cleared her throat. “Nice to meet you, Mr. Mills. I’m Jacinda Vidrio.”

Henry quickly shook her hand. “Likewise, Ms. Vidrio. My daughter has told me a lot about you.” He checked his watch. “I gotta go, Luce. Job interview.” He kissed the top of her head. “See you this afternoon.”

* * *

 

Henry did everything to not actually have to return to the school that afternoon. He begged Roni, but she was busy with the bar. He had been avoiding his friend, Rogers, like the plague ever since he turned to his job since the man was a detective, but was desperate enough to go to him. He also had work. Even Tilly, who normally would do anything for ten bucks, had a date to go on.

 

So, he found himself walking back into the school at 3 PM. Lucy sat with the other kids, waiting. She grinned up at him and winked.

 

“What was that for?” He asked.

“Ms. V wants to see you.”

“Oh, um…”

“You can go, I can watch her for a minute,” one of the moms who was picking up her kid spoke up. “I think Jacinda has been trying to arrange times for parent teacher conferences.”

 

Henry groaned internally, there was no way out of it now. He knew deep down why Lucy was so excited. His wife had died a few years ago and she wanted him to move on. Clearly, Lucy thought Jacinda would be good for him. Little did she know, they had already been together in a not very conventional way.

 

He headed into Jacinda’s classroom and shut the door behind him. The classroom was empty besides Jacinda, which eased his mind a little bit. He had feared that maybe she would’ve called child protective services or the police. Of course, it’d be admitting what she did, but it was still his worst fear.

 

“I didn’t know you were my daughter’s teacher,” he blurted out.

“You never drop off or pick up,” Jacinda replied, folding her arms over her chest. She didn’t look judgmental, just concerned.

“I’m normally either working or trying to find a better job.”

She nodded and walked closer to him. “I never would’ve imagined…it was all my friend’s idea. That’s not to say I didn’t enjoy it…and you told me you had a kid but…” She ran her fingers through her hair. “I had no clue Lucy’s home life was like this.”

“Please don’t tell anyone. She’s never in any danger, I never bring my work home or anything like that. She doesn’t even know, no one knows.” Henry’s heart picked up again. He couldn’t lose his little girl.

“Henry,” Jacinda put a hand on his arm. “I’m not going to tell anyone, I promise.”

He looked into her eyes and could see the honestly. “Thank you,” he whispered.

“I want to help you.”

“Mrs. Vidrio…”

“You’ve seen me naked, call me Jacinda.”

Blush tinted Henry’s cheeks. “Jacinda, I can’t accept your help.”

“It’s not just for you, it’s for Lucy. I understand you may not make enough to quit right away, but it’s a start.” She reached into her pocket and pulled out a business card, handing it over to him.

“Rolling Bayou?”

“It’s my friend Sabine’s food truck. She’s got a guy that helps her out, but he can only work so many days. She’s looking for someone else to fill in the rest. Like I said, pay’s not much, but it’ll help. I already talked to her, didn’t tell her how we met or anything, just that you’re a student’s dad that needs some help.”

“I…I don’t have any culinary experience.”

“That’s fine. She’ll teach you everything you need to know.”

 

Henry looked from the card, to back up at her.

 

“Thank you,” he whispered. “I…I just…I never thought I’d be here. Before my wife died, I was an author. My first book did okay, not amazing, but it kept the food on the table. My second book failed around the time she died and we lost our home…I just…I just need to take care of Lucy.”

“And you’ll be able to. She talks about you nonstop, Henry. Look at this.” Jacinda reached over to her desk and grabbed a folder, pulling out a piece of paper. “I had the kids right about their heroes and she chose you.”

Tears built up in his eyes. “Really?”

“Really. You’re doing a great job.”

Henry let out a shaky breath and swiped a tear away. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. I’ll let you go, but I hope to see you soon?”

“Definitely.”

 

He turned to the door and was about to leave, when she called to him. He turned back around to face her.

 

“Why The Knight?”

Henry chuckled, running his fingers through his hair. “I grew up in a group home and I always waited for someone to save me. Eventually, I learned I had to save myself.”

Jacinda slowly nodded. “I get it. Anyway, see you around…Henry Mills.”

“See you around, Jacinda.”


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> trueloveismagic prompted: Blue Hyacinth - Glass Believer (Constancy)

“You should get her flowers.”

 

Henry looked in the mirror, finding Lucy sprawled out on his bed behind him as she did her homework. He was trying on the shirt that Sabine had given him for his first day working at the beignet truck.

 

“Get who flowers?”

“Ms. V,” Lucy replied, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. “Duh.”

“Duh?” Henry raised an eyebrow. Sometimes it seemed Lucy was growing up just a bit too fast.

“She helped you get this job, and we all know you needed it.”

“Yes, and I said thank you.”

“But if you got her flowers, I’m sure she’d really appreciate it.”

Henry turned around to face her. “What is with you trying to push me and Ms. V together? You keep asking me to walk you into your classroom, you forget things at home so I have to bring them to you.”

“I just think it’d be nice if you found someone.” Lucy shrugged. “You’ve been lonely since Mom died.”

“I haven’t been lonely, I have you.” Henry kissed the top of her head. “And you’re all I need.”

“Maybe so, but one day, I’ll be out of the house and off at college. Wouldn’t it be nice to have someone outside me to spend your time with?”

 

Lucy gathered her stuff, leaving her father alone with his thoughts. The next afternoon, he found himself leaving work earlier than expected and going to the flower shop on the corner. He couldn’t afford roses, Heaven knew that…but maybe he could get something else. As he browsed the cheaper selections, he found something that matched the color of the robe Jacinda had been wearing the night they slept together. They happened to be the one bouquet he could afford…maybe it was fate.

 

He waited until that afternoon, once Lucy had been picked up by Roni to head to the school and give them to her. Jacinda was in her classroom, grading some book reports as he walked in. She looked up upon hearing his footsteps and smiled.

 

“Henry.” She stood up. “How can I help you?”

“I um, I got the job,” he stammered. “My first day was today.”

“Oh? How’d it go?”

“Pretty great. Sabine is awesome and while I won’t be able to quit my other job right away…I will in time.” He suddenly remembered the flowers he was hiding behind his back and held them out to her. “These are for you.”

“Hyacinths.” Jacinda accepted them and gave them a sniff. “They’re beautiful.”

“Just my way of saying thank you, for all you’ve done.”

“It’s no problem, really.”

“Look, I um…I know I’m not a catch and my life is really messy…but maybe after I’ve quit my other job…”

Jacinda patiently smiled. “Henry, I would love to go out with you, but the administration would have my neck if I dated a parent of one of my students.”

“Oh.” Henry’s cheeks flushed pink. “Of course.”

“However, Lucy won’t be my student after next month. I’m being transferred to the 3rd grade classroom since their teacher is on maternity leave. We have a replacement coming for me.”

“That should be about when I could quit my other job as well. Given I find something else to replace it.”

Jacinda grinned. “Then it’s a date.”

 

Across town, Lucy sat in a booth at Roni’s bar, bored. She had finished all her homework in class and she didn’t know what to do. She pulled her backpack onto the table and started going through it to find a book to read. Towards the back, she found her father’s first and only novel. How had that gotten there? She had read it when it was published, but just barely, she was too young to really get it. Pulling it out, she decided to flip through it, getting immersed in the story.

 

It wasn’t until she reached the part about Henry following Cinderella to the ball and giving her a blue hyacinth, that things started to click in her head.

 

_The flower would be a representation for their relationship. Blue hyacinths meant constancy, the quality of being enduring and unchanging. They didn’t know it yet, but their love would endure a lot, but it would never change._

 

As Lucy stared at the picture, she didn’t see an ordinary prince and princess.

 

She saw her father and her teacher.


End file.
